When it comes to electric aviation, most of the talk revolves around VTOLs (vertical take-off and landing), which are able to combine the benefits of vertical flight with cruising like conventional airplanes. Heart Aerospace’s ES-30 is one of the very few fixed-wing aircraft designed from the start to operate with zero standard fuel. The aircraft made waves in the industry worldwide and is now getting flight controls from one of the best in the business.
Swedish electric airplane maker has collaborated with Honeywell, one of the top names in aerospace technology globally, to integrate Honeywell’s next-generation flight control system into the new ES-30 regional electric airplane.
Honeywell’s next-generation compact Fly-by-Wire system is already in an advanced stage of development on multiple aircraft, including Vertical Aerospace’s eVTOL aircraft. Its functions are adaptable to the ES-30, allowing Heart to bring its airplane to market quickly and cost-effectively.
“Honeywell’s flight controls provide the ideal solution for Heart’s mission to revitalize and electrify the regional transport market,” said Vipul Gupta, President of Electronic Solutions at Honeywell Aerospace, in the press release. “Honeywell’s all-electric compact Fly-by-Wire is a ready-now solution based on decades of flight control experience in all aircraft types, and that reduces development time and risk for Heart.”
The 30-passenger ES-30 regional electric airplane is driven by electric motors powered by batteries. The aircraft will have a 200 km (124 miles) range on pure battery-electric propulsion and an extended hybrid range of 400 km (248 miles) with 30 passengers. A range of up to 800 km (490 miles) could be possible if only 25 passengers are carried, all with typical airline reserves.
Heart Aerospace selected Honeywell for the Joint Definition Phase of its ES-30 airplane. Once the phase has been completed successfully, the goal is to fully integrate Honeywell’s compact Fly-by-Wire system into development for production.
Heart plans to have a proof-of-concept aircraft in 2024 and start flight tests in 2026, with an entry into service in 2028. Heart Aerospace already has 250 firm orders for the ES-30, with options and purchase rights for an additional 120 planes.
